A disappointing night for Ireland at the Stade De France will still be one to remember for Graham Burke.
The Shamrock Rovers man became the first League of Ireland player to win an Ireland cap since Joe Gamble in 2007. Burke had played for an Ireland XI in Scott Brown's testimonial earlier this month but caps were not awarded for that game.
Along with Burke, Derrick Williams and Shaun Williams also made their Ireland debuts.
"It’s a brilliant feeling, I’m over the moon, I can’t really put it into words how I feel right now," Burke told RTÉ's Tony O'Donoghue.
"It's a dream come true and I’m proud to say I’ve made a senior cap for the Republic of Ireland."
Burke, whose family was in the crowd, entered the action with 20 minutes to play. A quarter of an hour earlier he had been given an indication that he may be about to make his debut.
"It was about 55 minutes or something like that I was told to go out and warm up. Then, you obviously get the call from the sideline to say that you'll be coming on. The heart started beating a bit faster. To go on the pitch was brilliant.
"It's crazy, even to go on the pitch and see all these world class stars go around, it's unbelievable."
Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
